Monitors would keep N.J.'s Sandy funds from harm's way: Opinion

State Senate President Steve Sweeney (D-Gloucester) has introduced a bill that would require integrity monitors to oversee federal relief aid in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.South Jersey Times

By Stephen Sweeney

The billions of dollars about to flow through New Jersey cannot be squandered through waste, fraud and abuse. Democrats intend to protect the people of this state from the kind of bad behavior these funds will certainly invite from those looking to take advantage of tragedy. That is why I have introduced legislation that would call for the state to put in place integrity monitors to oversee how and where these funds are spent.

The scale and the urgency of natural disaster recovery projects make them vulnerable to abuse and waste. But integrity monitors have proved to be successful in preventing problems from occurring. They can save money by ensuring that every dollar is spent wisely and they can help ensure the work is done the right way and on schedule.

Integrity monitors will provide protections against fraud and abuse and help to ensure the effective and efficient use of the large sums of funding to help New Jersey recover from one of the most destructive storms in history.

My legislation would require the state Treasury Department to use qualified monitors for all recovery and rebuilding projects that use federal or state funds, unless the treasurer determines that sufficient compliance controls are already in place. The monitors would be responsible for submitting reports every two months to the administration and the Legislature. They would be required to immediately notify the state attorney general of suspected criminal activity.

Integrity monitors have proved effective elsewhere, including New York City, where then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani used them for the rebuilding at the site of the World Trade Center after 9/11. All large-scale construction projects are prone to abuse, and recovery projects following natural disasters are especially vulnerable, according to experts.

In 2007, a subcommittee of the Congressional House Committee on Homeland Security released a report praising the use of integrity monitors during the 9/11 cleanup. According to the report, “Integrity monitors identified a number of contractors with ties to organized crime, which were subsequently removed from the site, found trucks cooping while on the clock, flagged several attempted frauds that were referred for prosecution, recovered $47 million in overbilling by contractors and subcontractors, and saved immeasurably more money by deterring fraud.”

While it is extremely unfortunate, it is all too common that people will take advantage of tragedies such as the storm in order to achieve personal gain. I wish it weren’t so, but it is a reality we must do all we can to protect against.

I hope to have this legislation passed as soon as possible, especially now that federal funding has begun to enter the state.

I look forward to working with the Christie administration to get the monitors in place for the important work ahead of recovering, rebuilding and reviving the damaged and destroyed areas of the state.